Crossfire
by BreadThief98
Summary: Ezra never truly understood the Empire until now.


_**Hey everyone! I had this idea and I figured why not? It's kind of sad, just warning you right now. Also, I wrote this before Steps into Shadow so this is an AU where Ezra doesn't lose his promotion.**_

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To say the mission was a failure was an understatement.

The mission was a complete and total disaster, not because of a mistake on the rebels' part. Hera had faith that Ezra would be able to lead the mission and do what needed to be done. It was the injustice and cruelty of the Empire that made the mission a tragic failure. The worst part was that Ezra blamed himself. Hera sat in the common room, contemplating Ezra's report, feeling remorse for the victims of the accident and for Ezra, who was completely out of it when he returned, emotionally exhausted from guilt, anger, and despair.

Lothal wasn't the only planet holding refugee camps. There was another planet, that had its fair share. While the refugee camps were oppressed on Lothal, things were ten times worse on the other planet. There was a secret factory that refugees, who were seen as free labor and cannon fodder, were forced to work at. Hera was beyond horrified when she was informed of the conditions. The factory currently held seventy-two men, women, and children. They were forced to work twelve standard hours a day, every day. The conditions were damp and hot and no one got to see the sun. Needless to say, Commander Sato wanted the workers rescued. She sent Ezra, along with Sabine, Zeb, Chopper, and fifteen pilots, to the planet. It was to be an in and out mission. The fleet would arrive in time to extract everyone. All Ezra's team had to do was get in, create a distraction, free the workers, and get out. However, something had gone terribly wrong. There were two routes to take. One was faster but the group would be more likely to be spotted. There was a less used route that would be longer but safer. Ezra had deemed that the best choice and off they went.

When Ezra and the others had reached the factory, the factory exploded. Ten of the rebels who were near the factory perished. Ezra, Zeb, and Sabine were okay and Chopper was with the _Phantom_. The same couldn't be said for the workers inside. Ezra, despite being dizzy from a wound on his temple, staggered towards the wreckage, begging who was left to help him sift through the burning debris. "There has to be someone!" Ezra had cried. Zeb had held him back. It didn't take the Force to know there would be no survivors. When they returned, Ezra submitted his report and went to his cabin. He was beyond devastated, and Hera didn't blame him. She reviewed the Imperial movement records Phoenix Squadron had obtained when they stole the light cruiser. What she saw shocked her.

]o[

"You really need to talk to Ezra."

Kanan jumped, slightly startled by Sabine's sudden interest. Why hadn't he sensed her? Was he that deep in thought? "How is he doing?" Kanan asked.

"Not good," Sabine replied. "He is really down about what happened. He is kicking himself for not taking the shorter route."

"He did what he felt was best for the mission," Kanan replied. "He felt like you were all more likely to be spotted when they took the short way. He did nothing wrong. I'll talk to him Sabine. He can't blame himself for something that wasn't his fault."

"Before you do, there's something I need to tell you. Something that I feel like you should tell him and not me."

"What is it?"

Sabine explained exactly what Hera had found. When she was finished, Kanan looked down. "So the mission was doomed to fail from the very beginning?" he asked.

"And the result would have been the same," Sabine replied. "There was no way we were going to be able to save those people."

Kanan nodded and stood. "I'll talk to Ezra. Maybe he won't be so hard on himself once I explain the situation."

"You can try, I guess," Sabine mumbled, "but you know how he is."

Kanan nodded. "There's that. But he needs to hear it."

Kanan patted Sabine's shoulder as he turned towards the white outline of the _Ghost_. He sensed his way towards the ship and to Ezra's room. As soon as he got there, he knocked.

]o[

Ezra was deep in meditation on the top bunk, a bandage on his temple, when he heard a knock on the door. He opened his eyes and sighed, knowing exactly who it was. "Kanan, I'm not exactly in the mood right now…"

"I know," Kanan replied through the door. "Can I come in?"

"I guess…"

The door opened and Kanan walked in and turned to where he assumed Ezra was. "May I sit?"

Ezra scooted over and patted the newly vacated space as he unfolded his legs. When Kanan heard the pat, he walked towards the bed. With Ezra's help, Kanan pulled himself up so that he was sitting next to his padawan.

"Kanan, I'm sorry…" Ezra mumbled.

"For what?" Kanan asked, draping an arm around Ezra's shoulder.

"I failed. There were seventy-two people in that factory. Seventy-two men, women, and children and I let them all die."

"Ezra, you have nothing to blame yourself for. You couldn't have known they were going to blow up the factory."

"Kanan, Hera put me in charge of the mission. It was my responsibility to get all of those people out and I couldn't even do that. Heck, I couldn't even save those pilots. Nineteen of us went in and only nine came out. How can you possibly not blame me?"

Ezra's eyes were watering. Kanan should have been yelling at him, but he didn't expect this. Kanan sensed that Ezra was getting upset and he pulled him closer. "Ezra, you took the longer route because you believed it was the safest route. As far as I'm concerned, you did the right thing."

"I'm sorry… I just… There was a shorter route Kanan. If I had decided to take the shorter route, then…" Ezra's voice trailed off.

"Ezra, do you know how many Stormtroopers were in that shorter route?"

Ezra looked up at Kanan. "How many?"

"At least eight hundred. They knew you were coming. Stormtroopers may have bad aim but I can tell you that against that many, you would have all died and the results would have been the same."

"They would have?"

"Ezra, they intercepted the mission plans. I don't know how, but they did. Apparently, they were under orders to destroy the factory if it ever got discovered along with everyone in it. I guess once they realized you had snuck past them, they could only hope to take you out with the explosion. There was no way you could have brought everyone back here. You were lucky you made it back here."

Ezra was silent for a moment. This new information did not relieve the guilt he was feeling, but it helped a little bit to know no one was mad at him. After a few minutes, he finally broke the silence. "I just don't get it. They were innocent people. I know the Empire isn't above hurting innocent people, I mean, we both know what happened to Tarkintown. Why do innocent people always end up in the crossfire?"

"I don't know, Ezra," Kanan sighed. "Even during the Clone Wars, innocent people were killed all the time. It's hard to understand why, but I guess that's just the cost of war."

"All the reason to end it sooner," Ezra sighed.

"I agree."

It went silent again for a few minutes. The silence was unbearable and Ezra found himself burying his face in his hands. "I don't think I truly understood the Empire until today… We have to take them down…"

Kanan nodded. "And take them down we will."

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 ** _How was it? I hope you enjoyed it. My next big project may not be until November when Marching Season ends and I have more time, but until then, I will do my best to keep you appeased with oneshots._**


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